The rink opened for the 2011- 2012 winter season last week. The lowest prices are during the pre-holiday time, which ends on November 4th. After that, prices go up.

Hours and admission fees are different for the pre-holiday and holiday schedule.

Pre-holiday goes through November 3, 2011. Adult Skating Prices: Monday – Thursday = $10.00, Friday – Sunday & Holidays $14.00. Lunch Skating Prices: Monday – Thursday $6.00 between 11:30am-1pm (excluding holidays). Seniors & Kids under 11 Skating Prices: Monday – Thursday = $8.00, Friday – Sunday & Holidays = $8.50. Skate Rental: $8.00

Pre-holiday hours:

Monday-Thursday
9:00am – 1:00pm
1:30pm – 5:30pm
6:00pm – 10:30pm

Friday
8:30am – 11:00am
11:30am – 2:00pm
2:30pm – 4:30pm
5:00pm – 7:00pm
7:30pm – 9:30pm
10:00pm – midnight

Saturday
8:30am – 11:30am
12:00pm – 2:00pm
2:30pm – 4:00pm
4:30pm – 6:00pm
6:30pm – 8:00pm
8:30pm – 10:00pm
10:30pm – midnight

Sunday & Holidays
8:30am – 11:30am
12:00pm – 2:00pm
2:30pm – 4:30pm
5:00pm – 7:00pm
7:30pm – 10:00pm

The holiday schedule is from November 4, 2011 to January 6, 2012. Adult Skating Prices November 4th – November 17th: Monday – Thursday = $15.50, Friday – Sunday = $19.00. Adult Skating Prices November 18th – January 6th: $21.00. Seniors & Kids under 11 Skating Prices November 4th – November 17th: Monday – Thursday = $9.50, Friday – Sunday = $10.50. Seniors & Kids under 11 Skating Prices: November 18th – January 6th $12.50. Skate Rental: $10.00

Holiday daily hours:

8:30am – 10:00am
10:30am – 12:00pm
12:30pm – 2:00pm
2:30pm – 4:00pm
4:30pm – 6:00pm
6:30pm – 8:00pm
8:30pm – 10:00pm
10:30pm – midnight

You can also get cheaper group rates. And if you need ice skating lessons, you can get them at the rink. For more information, call 212-332-7655.

Hours and fees for the January 7 – April 2012 schedule have not yet been released.

Auckland

Located on the North Island, this is the largest city in New Zealand. In Auckland, there are two stadiums hosting matches for the tournament. North Harbour Stadium and Eden Park are where you can catch games.

Invercargill

Find this city on the South Island. Here you can catch a match at the appropriately named Rugby Park.

Rotorua

Another North Island city, you can catch a rugby match here at Rotorua International Stadium. You’ll also want to check out the city’s hot springs.

New Plymouth

New Plymouth is a modern city on the North Island. See a Rugby World cup match at Stadium Taranaki.

Wellington

This large South Island plays home to Rugby World Cup matches. See a game at Wellington Regional Stadium.

Whangarei

Just north of Auckland is the city of Whangarei. Here tournament matches take place at Northland Events Centre.

Dunedin

This college town is hosting tournament matches. Take in a game at Carisbrook Stadium.

Palmerston North

This city is in the more rural area of New Zealand. But you can still see a Ruby World Cup match here. The Arena Manawatu plays host to the tournament.

Hamilton

This up and coming New Zealand city is hosting matches at Waikato Stadium.

Napier

This Art Deco city will play host to some of the matches. See a game at McLean Park during the Rugby World Cup 2011.

Nelson

If you’re on the South Island, you can find this city along the coast. Enjoy a rugby game at Arena Manawatu while you’re there.

I’ve never used this app, but it looks like you can put everything you want to see/do, including your hotel location, on a map in the app. This might be a good way for you to plan excursions from the hotel each day or just to make sure you don’t get lost trying to get back to your hotel.

It looks like it uses Google Maps, so you have to use this with the knowledge that Google Maps is not always correct with its locations of places. All in all, it seems like a good freebie. I’m downloading it myself for my next trip.

Thanks to the Newspaper Map website, you can translate the local newspaper at your destination into English (or other languages.

This is a great way to learn what is going on before you arrive. An instance of when this may be helpful is if a transit strike is expected to happen or something similar. Or, you can just play around with the newspapers of the world for fun. Enjoy!

The All American Airlines Shootout game, which is on the AA Facebook page, gives you the chance to win a 50% off or 15% off discount code.

You must enter to win by June 14th, 2011 at 11:59 p.m. A total of 100 of the 50% codes are being given out. And 9,900 of the 15% off codes are being awarded.

If you win a code, it is valid for travel within the 48 continental US states for travel between September 6, 2011 and November 14, 2011. And remember, you need to either fly out of DFW or MIA – OR fly to one of those airports to use the code (should you win one).

The The Today show free concert series kicked off on May 27th with Rihanna, but there are still plenty of shows for you to check out.

Here’s the full lineup for the 2011 The Today Show free concert series:

June 3rd – New Kids on the Block and the Backstreet Boys
June 10th – The Script
June 17th – Kenny Chesney
June 24th – Bruno Mars
July 1st – Pitbull featuring T-Pain and Ne-Yo
July 8th – Blake Shelton
July 15th – Chris Brown
July 22nd – Cee Lo Green
July 29th – Journey
Aug. 5th – Maroon 5
Aug. 12th – Zac Brown Band
Aug. 19th – Enrique Iglesias
Aug. 26th – Train
Sept. 2nd – Lenny Kravitz

All of the shows take place at Central Park’s Rumsey Playfield. Entry is at 6:00 a.m. and you can watch the sound check by the artist at 7:00 a.m.. Each day’s performance begins between 8:30 a.m. and 8:40 a.m.

The live broadcast will be over each performance day at 9:00 a.m. and all performances are over by 9:10 a.m each day.

Here’s the full lineup for 2011:

June 3rd – The Go-Go’s
June 10th – Jennifer Hudson
June 17th – Selena Gomez
June 24th – Florence & the Machine
July 1st – Beyonce
July 8th – Miranda Lambert
July 15th – Brad Paisley
July 22nd – the Goo Goo Dolls
July 29th – Debbie Gibson and Tiffany
Aug. 5th – Nicki Minaj
Aug. 12th – the American Idol Top 11
Aug. 19th – Taio Cruz
Aug. 26th – not yet released
Sept. 2nd – Mary J. Blige

For a while, I traveled with a point and shoot Canon SLR digital camera (SD1100 – newest version of same camera is the ELPH 300). I actually still own the SD1100 as it is an excellent little point and shoot digital camera. The thing about it is that it is terrible in low light, like sunsets, and just wasn’t offering as professional-like quality images as I wanted. So, I upgraded. I stuck with the Canon brand and had a budget of under $1,000. Here’s what I got -

It’s the Canon EOS Rebel T3i SLR digital camera. It is considered an upper entry level SLR camera. That just means to me that it has a lot of features that took me a little while to get the hang of! I was nervous about spending this much on a digital camera, but after using it on a couple of trips, I am *so* freaking glad I did! The image quality is really amazing when you compare it side-by-side to my older SD1100. I know that they are two totally different classes of cameras, but the difference truly is something to be seen. My travel photos look a million times better now.

And one of the things that I really love about this camera is that it records HD video. I took a great looking video of a hula show on Waikiki Beach last month with it. Awesome.

If you’re considering this camera, I recommend Amazon for the Canon EOS Rebel T3i best price. I compared prices at B&H Photo, Buy.com, Best Buy and Amazon when I was checking the for cheapest EOS Rebel T3i price. The bonus for me about Amazon was the free shipping and no sales tax. You can check the price on Amazon to see.

I honestly think this is THE best SLR digital camera for travelers.  To complete your travel package, I recommend the following (which is what I currently have):

• Canon Deluxe Photo Backpack 200EG for Canon EOS SLR Cameras
• Canon EF-S 55-250mm f/4.0-5.6 IS Telephoto Zoom Lens
• Transcend 32 GB Class 10 SDHC Flash Memory Card
• Gorillapod Flexible Tripod

The backpack is great for hauling your photography gear, plus there is plenty of room to stash your iPod and cell phone in the bag. Of course, it will also hold extra lenses, the gorillapod, extra batteries, etc.

Here’s a recent shot of the Grand Canyon from the EOS Rebel T3i camera:

If you’re interested in more reviews of the camera, here are a few I found (or you can check the price on Amazon now):

• click here for more Customer Reviews

Check out Flagship Private Air out of Ann Arbor if you are in the Detroit area. Flagship private air has a fleet of three planes, which can accommodate between five and eight passengers, and pricing is done by an hourly rate, which covers pilots, fuel costs and basic meal options. Get a quote for your private flight through Flagship Private Air by filling out the form on the “Contact” page of the company’s website with the details of your trip.

Contact Aerodynamics Inc if you are in the Detroit Area as well. The company, based out of Detroit suburb Waterford, offers charter jets in a variety of sizes. Get a quote for a chartered flight from Aerodynamics Inc by filling out the quote form on the “Flight Ops” page of the website.

Charter a large passenger plane or a cargo plane through nationwide charter company, National. National offers charter of Boeing 757 jets, which provide seating for more than 150 people, as well as two cargo jets, the Boeing 747 cargo jets, which provides space for 40 pallets of goods, and the Douglas DC-8, which provides cargo space for up to 18 pallets. Fill out the quote form on the National Airlines website to get a quote for your passengers or cargo jet charter.

When chartering a plane, be sure to ask about the additional costs related to your destination. Some airports charge a fee for private planes to land, which you can expect to be added to the cost of your charter.

St. Basil's Cathedral, Moscow, Russia by Ed Yourdon